Yabei leads the Efficient and Clean Cooking and Heating initiative, focusing her support on cooking programs in Africa and South Asia. Since she joined the World Bank as a Young Professional in 2008, Yabei has managed energy projects in the East Asia and Pacific, Europe, and Central Asia regions, with a focus on household energy and energy efficiency. She led the regional flagship program the East Asia and Pacific Clean Stove Initiative with country programs in China, Mongolia, Indonesia and Lao PDR; and co-ordinated efficient and clean heating projects in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Prior to joining the World Bank Yabei worked at the Joint Global Change Research Institute .She holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Maryland and a MA in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.